Growing Up
by flamanipulator
Summary: A curse leaves Arthur completely defenseless, and an attack by Morgana requires Merlin to take swift action. Will having his secret revealed make saving the kingdom easier for Merlin, or impossible?


**Growing Up**

Agravaine strode through the castle with his hand hidden within his jacket. This particular plan of Morgana's had taken nearly a month to prepare for, and that was not counting how long it took to amass an army; he could not mess up the scheme by appearing nervous at this point.

Checking the hallway subtly before stopping, he entered Prince Arthur's chambers quickly. The prince was on a patrol of the nearby villages to investigate a report of sorcery. Of course, the report had been falsified by himself, but the prince did not need to know that.

Hustling over to Arthur's bed, he removed his hand before lying on the floor and sliding under the bed. He began by fastening the object he had previously hidden in his jacket to the underside of the center of the bed. The poppet had been constructed of straw, strands of Arthur's hair tied around the neck, wrists and ankles. Getting all that hair had probably been the most difficult part of the plan thus far.

He then pulled a small knife from his belt and a sheet of paper before turning to lie underneath the bottom left corner of the bed. Referring to the sheet, he carefully carved a short series of runes into the corner, placing them so you would have to be in his current position to see them. He then repeated the process on the other three corners of the bed using a different series of runes which had been written on the paper as well.

Agravaine stood up and brushed himself off, pleased with his work, grabbing a silver armlet from a drawer for good measure. Now all that remained was for Morgana to cast the spell. With Camelot's Prince and Regent out of the way, the country would be theirs before the next night fell.

* * *

Merlin burst into the room with his usual zeal, setting the light breakfast onto the table before nearly prancing to the curtains. "Good morning, Sire!" he crowed as he threw open the curtains to allow light to explode into the room. He turned around smoothly to catch whatever the prince decided to throw this morning. Hands up and ready, Merlin was rather surprised when the pillow fell an entire meter short of him, barely making it past the bed.

"Rise and shine, Sir. Today's going to be a busy day!" He plastered a smile back on his face but toned down his enthusiasm slightly, preparing for an ill or grumpy Arthur. The prince had buried his head under a pillow and had all the blankets pulled as high as they could go, but he seemed much smaller despite the bulk of the covers. "Sire, don't make me literally roll you out of the bed again."

Arthur flipped over and threw back the covers as Merlin approached, freezing the warlock in his tracks. "Fine. I'm up. Happy now?" Arthur sat up in his bed, turning to face his servant. "Merlin, does my voice sound odd?" The prince then looked up to face him, seeing Merlin's wide and shocked eyes. "What? Is there something on my face?" Arthur lifted his hands to feel at his face, finally catching sight of what had Merlin so shell-shocked.

His hand was much smaller than it should have been, and it led to a skinny wrist and arm with a nearly invisible layer of hair. He followed his un-muscled arm up to his torso, looking down at his skinny chest and stomach. There was no hair, not even the light smattering that was hard to see anyways. There was no muscle visible beneath his skin, his ribs the most defined part of his abdomen. His eyes trailing further, he found his sleeping pants pooling around his knees, his body no longer nearly big enough to keep them on even in sleep.

Terrified eyes found Merlin's, the servant gaping at the eight-year old boy sitting on the bed in front of him. "Sire…what…?" Merlin stared. Arthur jumped to his feet and promptly fell over, his feet tangling in his pajama bottoms as he tried to run. Kicking them off, the little boy sprinted behind his dressing screen to examine himself in the mirror, a high-pitched scream calling Merlin back to his senses.

The warlock strode over to the prince's wardrobe, pulling out a shirt that was not worn very often. While he retrieved the garment he extended his magical senses, stumbling slightly as he found a very strong concentration of magic underneath Arthur's bed.

The naked prince stormed around the dressing screen towards his servant, fury written all over his expression. Merlin schooled his face into a small placating smile, attempting to calm the prince with his eyes. He lifted the shirt above the short head, sliding it down and over Arthur's tiny body. Moving to a drawer he pulled out a piece of string and a needle, threading it and then proceeding to tighten the neck of the shirt so it would not fall off the little boy's shoulders. It still hung down to his shins and forearms, despite being short-sleeved, but at least now the prince was covered.

"Merlin," the prince started, turning around as soon as the servant had finished choking the shirt, "what is going on? Why am I like this? How did this happen? What are we gonna do?" Arthur had flailed his hands around in expression, his features drawing together first in anger but gradually progressing toward fear. Merlin knelt down and grabbed the prince's shoulders gently, trying to calm him down.

"Arthur, it's alright. We'll figure this out." The prince's features returned to angry, his little hand coming up and smacking Merlin's forehead.

"I'm not actually a little kid, Merlin. Just help me figure this out! And help me think of a way to distract the council, or something! We're supposed to meet in an hour." Merlin rubbed his forehead lightly as the prince stormed off again, dropping harshly into his chair and eating the breakfast Merlin had brought.

The warlock turned and went to the bed, dropping onto his back and sliding under it. "Merlin, what are you doing? I asked you to help-"Arthur cut off when Merlin pulled himself out from under the bed, poppet in hand. "What is that? How did you know that was there?"

"When Morgana assaulted the king's mind, the curse was hidden under his bed. I figured it was probably the same thing." Merlin shrugged as he walked over to the fire. "The spell broke when I burned it, so maybe it will break this one too." He then tossed the poppet into the flames, waiting for the telltale shriek of magic that accompanied the breaking of a hex.

It did not come.

Turning his head, he found the young prince staring at him with hope in his eyes. "Did it work?" Arthur asked in his boyish soprano. Looking down Merlin shook his head sadly.

"No, Sire. I'm sorry. I'll ask Gaius for help though. Don't worry; we'll have this sorted out in no time!" Merlin plastered a smile on his face again, hoping that Arthur couldn't tell that it was fake. He turned toward the door to retrieve Gaius when the alarm bell began to toll. Both ran to the window, Merlin hoisting Arthur up into his arms for the little boy to see outside.

Almost as if by magic – for the outside world had held no hint of attack ten minutes prior – an army had appeared just outside Camelot's walls and had begun to seize the lower town. The attacking army seemed as though they were smaller than men, however. Casting forth his senses again, Merlin honed in on the enemy soldiers, only to find no sense of life within them. There was no major sense of magic within them, but enough to let him know they were not human. They were magical constructs, and by the looks of them not very powerful.

There were thousands of them.

"Sire, Morgana has been very busy, we need to flee." Merlin stated calmly as he set the little prince down, moving to collect things from the room.

"No, Merlin. I need to rally the men and we need to hold the castle. We can still-"

The door exploding inward cut off whatever he was about to say. Several of the enemy soldiers flooded into the room and honed in on the prince, charging forward. The constructs seemed to be made of mud, packed together into a vaguely human shape. Parts of their body were shiny and hard, like armor, and their swords appeared to be made of muddied steel. No matter how shabby they looked, they could easily kill the prince in his current state.

Merlin had only a second to think about what to do. Arthur stood near the window with a dumbstruck expression, scrambling at his waist for a sword that was not there. Rapidly making up his mind, Merlin struck.

"_Fýrweall!"_ he cried with his hand extended, a wall of flame springing up between the prince and his attackers. "_Astríce!_" The wall exploded out toward the constructs, bolts of flame striking each and disintegrating them instantly.

Merlin burst toward the prince who seemed even more shocked than before, grabbing the stunned Arthur up into his arms before fleeing the room. He made it to Gaius' chambers with only minimal interference, easily dispatched with a muttered spell. He roughly sat the prince on a chair and pointed into his face commanding, "Stay." Merlin then ran into his room, muttering words that caused various objects to fly around the room and past his head.

A bag tore itself from its spot at Arthur's feet to fly into the room, other floating materials cramming themselves rapidly but carefully into it. "Dammit, Gaius." He heard his servant mutter, but nothing really registered with the prince. He was still back in his room, watching the mud constructs charge him only to be thrown back and destroyed by a wall of fire over and over again, Merlin's voice canting the Old Tongue in his ear each time.

All too soon Arthur was swung up into Merlin's arms again, the warlock muttering a spell which caused Arthur's arms to lock themselves behind Merlin's neck and his legs to wrap themselves around his waist. Arthur was now effectively trapped in a reverse-piggy back while Merlin literally ran through the castle with a boy and a bag on his back, a staff in hand.

Merlin ran as fast as he could through the castle, taking several shortcuts and lesser-known hallways to make it to the lowest level of the castle without incident. "_Leoht"_ he uttered, a ball of light appearing before them as he rounded the corner and stepped through the gate that led to the Dragon's old prison. Turning around he closed the gate before centering himself.

Stretching his arms to either side, he felt his eyes glow before he even began the spell. "_Stángaderung bilucan!"_ The stones in the wall to either side began to bubble and shift, slowly melting to fuse around the gate. Slowly closing his hands together, he permanently sealed off the entrance to the Dragon's cave, the stones in the walls making it look like there had never even been a door behind them.

The warlock had to rest against the wall after that spell, catching his breath for a moment before turning back down the dark stairwell. Arriving into the main cavern, he briefly turned and locked the gate behind him and then walked into the cave that he had visited so many times before. He had never truly explored it though, knowing it was much bigger than just the stair that led beneath the platform where the chain had been sealed.

For now, however, he walked to that main platform and cast forth his magic, grinding the top couple of centimeters of stone into fine sand before pulling out a thin blanket to lie over the now-soft ground. He unlocked Arthur's arms from around his neck and set the prince and the bag onto the floor. Slowly and gently he did everything, now wary of the prince's blank yet shadowed expression.

Kneeling before his prince, Merlin gently set his hand on Arthur's tiny shoulder. "Arthur? Are you alright?" he asked calmly, looking at the prince for a reaction. Arthur's head slowly rose to meet Merlin's gaze before a tiny fist lashed out and struck the Warlock as hard as it could.

"You're a sorcerer! You've been a sorcerer this whole time, pretending to be nice to me and be my friend and _lying_ to me and now you've _kidnapped_ me!" Arthur's eyes had turned to a crazed sort of rage, the shock finally wearing off and all of the events up till now finally catching up to him. Merlin let him rant, ignoring the light bruise that was starting to form on his jaw.

"I'm eight years old and trapped beneath a castle with a _sorcerer_ while Morgana ransacks the town and does who knows what! My father is ill- My father!" Arthur's rage evaporated immediately into stark terror, tears welling up at the corners of his eyes. "Merlin…My father. He's still broken from Morgana's last attack. And now he's all alone up there, and Morgana is attacking and will probably kill him, and I can't do anything and I'm trapped in this ridiculous, tiny body and…and…"

Arthur trailed off as the tears finally cascaded down his face, Merlin tugging him forward. The prince collapsed into Merlin's arms and sobbed as hard as his little body would allow, clutching Merlin's shirt and trembling despite having just cursed the servant for lying to him for years.

"Shh. It's alright, Arthur. We'll get through this, I promise. I'll do everything I can to keep your father safe, and I promise I won't let anything happen to you. It'll be alright." Merlin muttered calmly into Arthur's hair, rubbing small circles into the boy's back as he trembled and murmured about how awful the situation was.

After a few more moments of allowing himself to be comforted Arthur pulled away, leaving Merlin's embrace to sit on the blanket. "Alright. I'm the crown prince of Camelot, and I'm not eight years old no matter how I look and feel." He said to himself as he wiped his face with his gigantic sleeves. "So? What's the plan?" Arthur turned his gaze to the warlock, his tears gone and his face resembling the tough prince that he was inside.

"Well, first off we need to find out the state of things up above." Merlin said sedately, rolling his shoulders and joining Arthur in the bad-ass savior mindset. His resolve faltered as he suddenly realized that his lie of nearly seven years had been exposed and he could potentially be killed after this ordeal was finished. "Sire…" he trailed off uncertainly, his face showing just how worried he suddenly was.

Arthur shook his head. "No, Merlin. I'll worry about your sorcery later. For now it is a boon, and I cannot afford to look at it any other way. I can make you no promises for afterward, but I will do my absolute best to ensure that you are not executed for this. If we survive, that is.

"Now. You said to find out the state of things above. Any idea how to go about doing that? You've sealed off the entrance to this cave, so I assume we can't very easily leave."

"I could attempt scrying, Sire. If I can find some water. I'm not very good, but I know the spell, and natural pools or stone basins are the best ways to scry short of crystals. Shall I go look around for something? I honestly have not explored much of this cavern." Arthur nodded, watching as Merlin stood and moved back toward the entrance of the cave. "Merlin!" he called out, looking at his servant before continuing. "Thank you, for rescuing me. And be careful in your wanderings; I can't save you if you trip and fall, or anything."

"I shall, Sire. I'll be back soon." Merlin smiled as he turned and made his way along the wall of the cavern, coming to another set of stairs that led far deeper than the last stair he had taken in this cavern. He allowed the smile to remain on his face as he thought about Arthur's acceptance of his magic, at least for now. Undoubtedly he would want to know more in the future, but for now he was okay with it and planning on helping Merlin avoid the law after they retook the castle.

The stairs finally ended after nearly ten minutes of descent, making Merlin dread the hike back up. This far down there was very little natural light, requiring Merlin to summon forth another light to see by. He only walked for a short distance before he heard the sound of trickling water which made him turn in its direction. After five minutes of walking he finally found the source; a thin trickle of water made its way from a series of shelves worn into the rock face, spawning from extremely high up. The trickle formed a small pool of water with a diameter about the same as his forearm was long. The pool then drained out via an equally measly trickle into the darkness, eventually falling away somewhere off to his right.

This was a natural pool as well as stone basin, however, and should be effective for scrying. At least, that was his hope. _"Sien ungesewen, álýman sé ic ásécan_." Merlin focused all his attention on the spell and the basin, blocking out all other thoughts and senses as he thought of Uther. The water seemed to shimmer before an image began to appear, resolving itself into a fuzzy yet discernible view of the king's chambers. The image would change into other various pictures frequently, but it would always return to the king's chambers as Merlin refocused to allow him to make sense of what he could see.

Uther sat where he always sat, staring out the window as always. The image flickered and Morgana was suddenly in the room, surrounded by five or six of her mud soldiers. He could make out enough of what she was saying to know it was taunting, but so far she had made no harmful moves toward the king who continued to ignore her. Uther finally turned to the witch and made Merlin gasp as the words 'I'm sorry' could be made out. He said something else but it was too broken for Merlin to understand.

Instead he refocused his attention and called up an image of each of his friends. Gaius and Gwen were in the woods somewhere, probably on their way to Ealdor or some friendly kingdom. Leon, Gwaine, Percival and Elyan were in the dungeons being held captive for refusing, once again, to swear allegiance to Morgana.

He briefly checked up on Arthur before allowing the spell to fade, catching sight of the little boy wiping his eyes again before visibly steeling himself and moving to look through the supplies Merlin had managed to grab.

Allowing the image to fade, Merlin stood and turned back to the darkness of the cavern. Most of the area he was currently at sloped downward gently past where his light shone, but there was a narrow tunnel leading into a wall along the gentle slope. Casting his light forward he followed it down the tunnel, walking until he came to a part where the tunnel branched off. He cast a marking spell on the wall of the tunnel he came from before choosing another tunnel in front of him, casting a similar spell and then following it.

After a few more turns and marks, Merlin thought that he started to recognize the area. After only another couple of steps, Merlin expanded the light and smiled when he saw the underground well where the afanc had poisoned Camelot's water. Merlin thought for only a few seconds before smiling and turning around to get back to Arthur. He now had a way back into the castle that would let him get anywhere without ever entering a main hallway.

"Arthur, I think that I can get our knights out of the dungeons." Arthur jumped as Merlin came up the stairs so quickly it could only have been by magic. His sentence caught the most of Arthur's attention though. "Truly? How?"

"This cavern links to Camelot's water supply, which I can use to get into the main castle and to the dungeons relatively easily. As long as they trust me, I can hopefully have them down here by the time the alarm goes off."

"Merlin, of course they trust you, why would…oh. You're going to use magic to get them out." Arthur stated after a quick revelation. Of course Merlin would need to use magic to get them out of prison; it made no sense to think otherwise.

Merlin had a sad and hesitant look on his face and Arthur could tell that he was doing the whole 'what if they hate me because of my magic' scenario in his mind. He let out an internal sigh, opening his mouth to reassure the warlock. "Merlin, they know you. As much as I hate to say it…" Arthur trailed off as he struggled to get out what he had observed over the last several months. "You are the one that I think all of them are here for. Percival followed Lancelot, who came for you. Gwaine came for you. Elyan and Leon may be loyal to me, but Elyan knows that Gwen would follow you to the end of the Earth, so I think he would to. And Leon will follow you because you can take him to me. "

His servant smiled, but it was still hesitant and sad. Taking a deep breath, Arthur moved forward and wrapped his arms around the warlock's waist. "You'll be fine. They'll be fine. They would follow you anywhere, magic or not, Merlin." Arthur smiled slightly as arms came around him and hugged him back, knowing he had succeeded in boosting Merlin's confidence. He pulled back, glad to be out of the hug, but also glad that eating his pride had helped his friend.

"Alright, darkness won't help, so I'm gonna go now. As you know, there's a bit of food in the bag, and I've marked off a path to some water down at the bottom of those stairs." Merlin pointed off to the stairs he would soon be going down again.

Merlin paused.

Looking down his eyes flashed an intense gold as he began to drill down into the stone beneath the sand he had created earlier. Finishing a space that Arthur would be able to hide in, he looked up to the little prince. "Arthur, I am going to make a ward that will go off if anyone other than myself or the knights tries coming up the stairs. If it goes off, I want you to get under the blanket and hide in the space I just made. Wait until they leave, then go down the stairs, follow the trail I will leave and get out of Camelot. If you go to the Darkling Woods, call out for Darlen. Tell him you come on behalf of Emrys and need shelter. Hopefully it won't come to that, but this is just in case."

Arthur watched as his friend walked off, eyes trailing him until he was beyond sight from the island. He was tired of the emotions of this little body. There was no way he had been this emotional when he was actually this age. Then again, nothing like this had happened when he was actually eight years old. He frowned as his eyes welled up with tears yet again, already missing and terrified for Merlin and his knights, his father and his kingdom.

Deciding to turn his tears to something productive to potentially cry about, he began to think about Merlin, and how his possession of magic would affect his future in Camelot.

Sneaking into the dungeons was easier than it had ever been under the Pendragon reign. There were no human guards at all, as none had sworn to Morgana in the hopes that Arthur would return swiftly. Merlin could sense the mud constructs in the ground, ready to spring up and attack anyone who came near.

Except a sorcerer.

For a reason Merlin was unable to fathom, Morgana had keyed the creatures to not react if an approaching person held magic. Maybe it was that Morgana thought she was the only sorceress around, or no one with magic would dare help Uther. Whatever the reason, Morgana had made sneaking into the dungeons impossibly easy.

Merlin merely strode through the castle, walking right on top of mud constructs without so much as a twitch in reaction. He arrived at the prison cells after his uneventful trek from the cave, thinking of how he would sneak the knights back along his path. Despite his back-alley route, the lack of magic would make at least the mud creatures at the dungeons activate.

"Leon! Gwaine! Elyan, Percival! Where are you guys?" Merlin cast his voice down the hall, being as loud as he could while still whispering to avoid drawing unwanted attention. Three cells reacted, hands grasping the bars while faces pressed forward.

"Merlin? Is that you?" Gwaine's voice sounded from the furthest of the three. "How did you escape? Is Arthur with you?"

Merlin walked briskly down the hall to stop between the cells. Taking a deep breath, he raised his eyes to look at each knight. Leon was in a cell with two of the castle guard, Elyan and Percival were in a cell with two guards as well, and Gwaine was in the most crowded cell, five guards crammed into the same space he probably considered a small bedroom.

"You guys…I _really_ need you to trust me. No matter what, just trust me, alright?" his eyes pleaded with Gwaine first, trailing to the other three knights in turn. Gwaine smiled brightly and spoke, pulling Merlin's attention back to him.

"Merlin, I have and will continue to give my life for you. I trust you. Now get me out of here!" Gwaine held his smile while he caught Merlin's eyes, making the warlock smile sadly. Extending his hand to Gwaine's gate he muttered "_Aliese duru rýne."_

Gwaine's eyes widened marginally as the gate sprung open but he kept his smile. He strode forward, a free man, and hugged the warlock tightly. "I trust you, Merlin." Merlin returned the hug briefly before pushing away to unlock the other two cells. The other knights were hesitant but they came forward and clapped hands on his shoulders in support.

The guards stayed still.

Gwaine turned to the nine men still in their cells and said, not at all quietly, "Look you lot: he's a sorcerer. And he's your only chance in hell of getting out of this dungeon alive. Either come with us or ask him to lock the doors again.

"So, Merlin," he turned back to his best friend, "how are we getting out of here? I assume this place is crawling with those mud monsters?"

"Wait here; I have a plan. But get ready to run." Merlin said quietly, catching all their eyes before striding back toward the main entrance of the dungeons. "_Ne un clyse!_" he commanded as he arrived at the top of the main staircase. The door swung shut and glowed briefly, the lock and door sealing against all magic. Only the key would open it, which would hopefully stall Morgana who would try with magic first, giving them a solid extra few minutes to run.

Returning to the others, he smiled when he saw the nine guards standing outside the cells as well. He stopped between where he could sense the mud monsters, extending his hands to either side to rest above the constructs. "Get ready to follow me at a run. _Forbearnan ácwele!_" two fireballs dropped from his hands, striking and sinking into the ground. The mud monsters began to shriek, the fire consuming their bodies and their magic alike.

Merlin turned and sprinted toward the tunnel he had entered through, hearing the booted feet of thirteen men following him. The alarm bell sounded almost immediately, spurring them on. Merlin only had a couple of Morgana's soldiers to deal with quickly before they arrived at the armory. "Gather what you can as quickly as you can. _Ne un clyse!_"

The only door into the armory slammed shut and sealed as soon as the last guard passed through it. Merlin jumped over to the far wall to remove a large shield and open the door behind it. All the knights had their armor and weapons, helping each other into them as quickly as possible. The guards merely grabbed chainmail, swords and shields and threw their tunics on over them.

"Go through this door and follow the lights. Wait for me at the cistern." Merlin commanded, pushing Leon through the portal first. He watched all the knights pass through while he cast his senses abroad for Morgana's forces. They had made it into the dungeons and were pursuing them. Merlin's abstract course confused them enough to not lead them straight to the armory, but it was only a matter of time.

Jumping into the small entry way, Merlin spelled the shield to rise and cover the secret door as soon as Merlin closed and locked it. He then turned on his heel and ran, putting as much distance as possible between him and Morgana. He dispelled his lights as he passed them, erasing the trail that would lead Morgana right to them, seeing as she knew about the secret doorway they were fleeing down.

As directed, all the men were waiting for him at the underground well. "Alright, you guys. We're almost to Arthur, just a bit further." He turned and jogged down his path, removing the spell markers along the way.

Following a sorcerer was weighing heavily on the guard's nerves. Walking, for what seemed to be forever, through a dark tunnel that none of them had even known existed beneath their fair city was only made worse by the fact that it was a _sorcerer_ leading them. Never mind that it was Merlin, the prince's manservant of nearly seven years. Uther had poisoned them to believe that all sorcerers were evil, no exceptions, and the only thing that gave them any confidence was that the four greatest knights in the kingdom trusted the boy.

Finally the group arrived atop the stone island where a little boy wearing a shirt ten times his size was sitting. Every one of the men froze when they caught sight of the prince while Merlin proceeded as though it was normal. The boy caught sight of them and broke into a beaming smile, rising and nearly bouncing over to where they stood.

"Merlin! I told you that you would be fine! Great job!" Arthur approached the knights happily, clapping his tiny hand on Leon's arm first. "Good to see you men. It makes me glad that Morgana did not slay you despite knowing you would never turn on me."

"S-sire?" one of the guards stammered. "You're Prince Arthur?" it was more of a stunned statement than a question. Arthur nodded sedately as he addressed the guards. "Morgana cursed me last night, although I know not how. I woke this morning in this body and was forced to flee for my life."

"And…you…enlisted a sorcerer to help you?" the guard who had originally spoken out continued to do so, although his voice had dropped into a timid not-squeak. Arthur would have clouted the man over the head for showing such little dignity at any other time; he was too short to reach. "No, he enlisted himself. Merlin saved me from Morgana's creations and proceeded to smuggle me through the castle and down here. I cannot fight in this body; it's too weak and untrained. I owe my life to him, and in light of that and his long history with me I trust him completely. I expect you to do the same."

He turned to look kindly at his servant, but the man was not where he expected him to be. Instead he was met with a staircase of floating stones spiraling upward, the man in question muttering consistently while he climbed the stones that flew from the darkness to join the stair.

The men all stared openly now, rather shocked at seeing such a display of magic cast so apparently effortlessly. Although they had been told repeatedly that all sorcerers were evil and possessed great power, none of them had witnessed more than party tricks. The victims of Uther's wrath were often easy to overcome and put up little fight during the execution, and the ones who did get the drop on them never displayed this kind of magic.

The guards all fought to not step backward, finally coming to the realization that fireballs and locking doors had not brought them to: Merlin was not just a sorcerer; he was a _powerful_ sorcerer.

No one interrupted Merlin's work for fear that breaking his concentration would cause him to tumbled to his death. Gwaine, however, did follow the warlock up the steps, keeping a few stairs behind him until they were stepping out into the night air several hundred feet higher than they had started.

Merlin ceased his muttering as he stepped onto solid ground, turning to face the knight that had followed him. He stumbled as Gwaine enveloped him in yet another hug, relaxing into this one after a few seconds. "You're a good man, Merlin. I said that I trust you, and I meant it. Elyan and them trust you as well, and the guards trust you enough. Thank you for saving us.

"Now," he said cheerily as he pulled back, turning them to face back into the forest, "what on earth are we doing out here?" The bells from the castle could still be heard albeit in the distance. They were only about half a mile outside the lower town, but it still surprised Gwaine how far from the castle-proper the cavern beneath them was.

"We're getting some food." Merlin closed his eyes and listened, casting forth his senses once again. His magic touched upon a relatively large source of life. "_Flán ástrice!_" he called quietly, extending his hand in the direction of the creature. A nearly-visible bolt of magic flew forth and a short cry sounded from the woods. Merlin walked towards it, stopping when he came upon a good sized deer. Casting a spell he picked it up as though it weighed nothing, surprising Gwaine.

He set the deer on the top stair when they journeyed the short distance back to the mouth of the cave, extending his hands to either side once again. "_Átéon._" Gwaine started – he was going to have to get used to the amazing things Merlin could do at some point – as the stairs began to move down on their own, another rock coming up to replace the old one, carrying their load down rather quickly. Merlin stepped forward as another rock flew up, allowing it to descend and bring him with it. Gwaine copied the motion hesitantly, fighting not to shuffle as the rock bore him toward the others.

Gwaine could hear Merlin muttering once again the whole way down, catching sight of a different rock flashing gold very briefly every couple of seconds.

The instant Gwaine touched the softened ground the rocks behind him flew off in every direction, disappearing from sight. He looked around, still rather surprised, when Merlin told him to step back onto the rock that had remained.

He wished he hadn't.

As soon as he put his weight on the stone it lifted, bearing him upward in the same fashion as before. The other rocks flew from every corner of the cave to reform the staircase, revolving and rebuilding as they reached the top of the cave.

Gwaine turned and jumped down to the next lowest rock, trying to make his way back. He almost fell as the stair shuddered and reversed directions, carrying him back down.

The other knights and guard members stared in open awe of the two while Gwaine clipped Merlin lightly on the head. "Stupid. You could have just told me what would happen!" he smiled to take any sting out of the words and turned the clip into a ruffle in the same motion.

"You guys are cute and all, but can we figure out what we're going to do about Morgana?" Arthur piped up from the blanket. Merlin carried the deer a short distance from the others and began to skin and clean it with magic.

"Well, if we kill Morgana then all her minions should disappear, or at least lose functionality with no one to control them. She probably has a vessel for your spell, Arthur, which is why burning the poppet didn't help. I could always sneak back into the castle, take her by surprise and find the vessel." Merlin did not even look up while he said this, focusing with gold eyes on their dinner.

"I'm willing to bet that Morgana has changed the spell that kept the mud monsters from attacking you." Gwaine announced from his place by Arthur. "You probably won't be able to sneak around as easily. We should probably come with to help fend the creatures off."

"Our swords did almost nothing to them when they were taking the castle. Why would this time be any different?" All of the guards nodded at this point, the knights looking to each other. Arthur looked at his servant.

"Merlin? Could you fix that?"

The warlock sat in silence for several seconds, staring at the ground with unfocused eyes. Finally he nodded, raising his head. "I think it should probably be a temporary spell so that you can use your swords in public afterward. I would need brass wire and some thin copper plates, about the size of coins. Elyan, would you be able to supply that?"

"Assuming we could get to my forge, yes. I should have some of that stuff laying around." The knight replied, getting to his feet.

"Eat first." Merlin said as large strips of meat peeled themselves from the deer, cooking all the way through as they left the body. It was certainly not the tastiest dinner they'd ever had, but it was definitely not the worst.

"Elyan, do you remember how to get to the cistern?" At the knight's nod Merlin continued. "From there can you make it to your house without being seen?" another nod. "Alright. I'll need enough wire to securely fasten the plates to the cross-guard of all the swords. Here." Merlin reached into the bag and pulled out a length of string. "_Atheostrian sceadu._ Fasten this around your neck. It won't make you invisible, but it should help hide you from anything. It won't last very long; maybe an hour or two."

"Thanks. I'll be quick." With that, Elyan was gone.

"You guys go up and get some firewood for the night." He said, turning to the guards. "I don't think we should try to take the castle today, seeing as it'll start to get dark in an hour or so. I'm going to go down into the tunnels. This cave goes quite deep, so there may be something useful deeper down."

"I'll come with you." Gwaine announced as he finished inhaling his deer.

"I'll stay with the prince."

"As will I." announced Leon, followed by Percival.

Nodding, Merlin began his trek down the stairs as Gwaine smiled and followed. He summoned a light and shortly afterward the two were carefully making their way down the slope.

The cave walls gradually came together, the cavern shrinking down to tunnel size that became quite steep rather quickly. Casting his light further forward, Merlin smiled as he caught sight of a worn staircase that led deep into the ground.

Gwaine gasped as the tunnel suddenly became a bridge leading down through a massive space. Looking down one side he gulped as he saw flames far down, too far for their light to reach them. The heat could be felt even as high up as they were, however.

Waving his hands outwards, Merlin directed the light to fly away from them, ceasing their walk in the process. The light split apart and continued on until the walls of the cavern were illuminated, the lights slowly descending towards the flames. The bridge they stood on continued to descend, but it split off into several other stairs that then burrowed into the walls, different tunnels stretching away in several directions.

"Merlin…What is this place? It's almost like…a mine…or something." Gwaine stammered out as they began walking again.

"I think so… Gaius once mentioned something about denizens who lived under the ground, long before men populated the surface. Not a lot was ever known about them. They apparently died out before we learned to write, or something like that."

The two continued on in silence, marking when they made a turn and eventually exiting into a side tunnel much lower than where they started. They walked for a solid hour before they finally came upon anything, entering a chamber through a carved stone doorway.

"Merlin…is this…real?"

"Yeah, Gwaine. I think this is all very, very real."

The two had stepped into a treasure chamber, four or five chests big enough to hold an average adult rested among nuggets of gold, silver, and various jewels. Merlin unlocked one of the chests, gasping as even more gold and jewels came into sight. "Gwaine, I think you could buy Camelot with everything in here…" Gwaine nodded dumbly, his jaw slack and unable to form words.

Merlin shook his head and stooped to gather several rubies, cramming them into his pockets before gesturing. The remaining loose gems and ores lifted and flew into the open chest, stacking impossibly before the chest shut and locked itself again.

Uttering a long string of words, Gwaine blinked as each of the chests slowly lifted into the air. Merlin turned and the chests all began to follow him as he walked back along the corridor. Gwaine followed sedately, still slightly in awe of the ease with which Merlin cast magic.

Upon arriving back at the main chamber, although much lower down than before, Merlin began to cant another long string of syllables. As his spell came to a close he gestured upward, the chests following his direction and floating toward the original tunnel that led to the dragon cave. Merlin then turned and began to walk along the wall, following a staircase that led further into the darkness.

Eventually the duo arrived at the bottom levels of the cavern, Merlin erecting a shield to protect them from the blistering heat. The path they walked along was only meters above a river of lava, flames rising higher than their heads and igniting strips of the walls and pathway.

Merlin stopped in the middle of the bridge, turning to face the molten river. He pulled from his pocket the gems taken from the treasure room, tossing them into the air to be suspended above the flames. "Merlin, what are you doing?" Gwaine queried, cautiously watching the rubies glittering with the reflected flames.

"Getting us a bit of extra help." He replied easily, but with a weight that Gwaine was unused to hearing.

Then he began to chant.

It started as a soft murmur, the words a regular talking volume. The jewels began to glow from within and drifted further apart, growing brighter and brighter the further they moved. Merlin's voice slowly increased in volume until it became tinged with a roar, his voice sounding like an odd mix between a human and a beast. Flames erupted higher than before, consuming and then disappearing into the gems. After thirty seconds balls of lava rose from the river and joined the flames inside the rubies, all of which were now glowing like small stars.

Merlin cut off his spell with a shout, his hands spreading out like wings as bodies of flame and what appeared to be a kind of metal erupted from within the gems. There were ten flaming creatures, human-like in shape but the similarities ended there. Their bodies were of flame and a liquid that glinted like metal but was too insubstantial; Gwaine could see through it at times and it glowed like the flames. The substance flowed along arms that ended in flames or blades made of a more solid substance, resembling steel yet still far shinier, tinged with magic and fire.

Only seconds after Merlin's spell cut off the creatures receded into their rubies, all flying back into Merlin's hand to be replaced in his pocket. Gwaine noticed the shield flicker and turned to see his friend swaying on his feet. The knight quickly ducked under and arm and supported Merlin before turning and walking back to the tunnel to be protected from the heat.

Arthur smiled as he saw Merlin and Gwaine reaching the top of the steps, but the smile faded to a frown when he saw the state they were in. Both were soaking wet and panting as though they had run the length of the kingdom and sweated one of the lakes within. Gwaine was supporting Merlin and eased him onto the blanket before he began to strip off his dripping armor.

"What happened to you guys?" Arthur asked, concern tingeing his young voice and fear rising that they had been attacked.

"Well, Merlin decided it would be a good idea to stand above a river of lava, cast some super powerful magic, cast more powerful magic to get us back here, and all the while have another equally powerful spell suspending five enormous chests of numberless riches. And I had to practically carry him the entire way from the River of Hell." Gwaine stripped down to his breeches while explaining, finally collapsing next to the other two on the blanket.

There were three small fires going at equal distances around the island, giving off the only light in the cave after Merlin dropped his mage-light. Elyan had returned and was sitting around a fire with Leon and Percival, a space between them clearly indicating Arthur had been there as well.

"Chests of riches? Where on earth did you two go, Gwaine?" Arthur's voice rose rapidly, concern and excitement causing him to rise to his feet and nearly bounce. As soon as he realized what he was doing he stopped, dropping to the ground and waiting for Gwaine to respond in a much more princely manner.

"We found a mine much lower down that Merlin thinks was run by the denizens of the earth long before man ruled the surface. Not a lot is known about them, he just knows that Gaius mentioned them once a while back."

"What about the magic? Were you two attacked?" Arthur's face grew yet another frown as he absorbed the information and his thoughts progressed along their natural path.

"No, Merlin just used magic to suspend the chests. And fly us nearly half a mile straight up, while suspending those chests. Oh, and he summoned ten flaming creatures of death from the river of lava and stored them in some rubies he grabbed, all the while suspending the chests and holding a shield so we didn't get roasted. Kid's freaky powerful, by the way."

Gwaine smirked as he finished recounting Merlin's deeds, catching the exhausted warlock's eye before turning back to the prince. "Don't worry; he says he'll be fine by morning."

"Actually, I'll be okay enough in just a few minutes. _Áfeormian ádrúwian gescirpla."_ Merlin gestured to himself, and repeating the spell as he gestured to Gwaine's clothing. Droplets of water lifted from the clothes and coalesced above them, forming a slightly dirty ball of liquid roughly the size of a head. "_Stanas áhlocian maele, híersumest me._" Merlin gestured to the stone beside them, the rock suddenly dipping downward and resolving into a shallow basin into which Merlin dropped the water. Gwaine shook his head in awe as the warlock swirled his hand, drawing out the small amount of filth and flicking it over the edge, leaving pure water behind.

"Like I said, I'll be fine in just a few minutes." The servant smiled at his friends before turning to the nearest fire. "Elyan, can you get me the wire and discs? I'll enchant them now so I can rest up tonight." Elyan nodded and retrieved the materials from his bag, setting them in front of Merlin. Leon and the guards had stood to join the company on the blanket, bringing their swords with them and waiting.

Closing his eyes and thinking for a moment, Merlin then reached for the first of the copper discs. Using a knife he kept in his bag he carved a single rune into each side of the disc, setting it aside and repeating the process for the other twelve. He then stacked the discs, holding them within his hands as he began to chant about flames and disruption of magic.

Finishing the first part of the spell, Merlin then strung the wire through the discs, tying them securely around each sword handed to him. He then bound each disc to the sword it was attached to, finalizing the enchantment. A light shimmer of flame ran up each blade before vanishing, indicating a successful spell.

Merlin sighed and dropped to his back, all the magic of the day officially catching up to him. Most of it he had invented on the spot, merely commanding his magic to do something and hoping it worked out. Only the fire elementals had been an actual spell from his book, but they were even more tiring because it was a very powerful spell. He closed his eyes and allowed himself to drift off to sleep, grateful he had softened the ground when they first arrived.

Merlin awoke to the sound of whimpering. Opening his eyes he waited for them to adjust to the dim light from the dead fires. There had been no need for a guard seeing as he had set one of the elementals to guard the only path to where they rested, so everyone was sleeping soundly.

When he could finally see enough to make out the sound, he found Arthur twitching lightly and grimacing beneath one of the knight's cloaks. The little prince tossed and struggled with whatever vision held him, emitting small cries and scrunching his eyes tightly.

Merlin gently shook the boy's shoulder, catching the fist that flew up equally gently and capturing Arthur's eyes. "Arthur, shh. It's alright, it was just a bad dream." He whispered, holding the still frightened eyes of an eight-year old boy.

Awareness entered said boy's eyes and he shook his head, fighting back tears. He was sick of this little body and the emotions that ran uncontrolled through it. He had not been affected by a nightmare in years, and even when he had been they never bothered him this much. The little body felt like crying for mommy and crawling beneath the covers for comfort, something he had never felt the need to do. Granted, he had not had nightmares of this level until he was much older, but still.

The hand on his shoulder gently shook him again, the one on his arm barely pulling on him, letting him know it would be okay to give in to a hug.

He did.

Arthur lurched forward and buried his face in Merlin's jacket, allowing the servant to give him comfort he never had a reason to ask for at this age, and would never have welcomed in his real body. Merlin pulled him close and lay back down, a mental shrug churning the sand beneath them to a more comfortable arrangement. Another twitch drew the cloak over both of them, soft words whispering reassurances into the little boy's ear to send him to sleep.

Upon waking, Arthur would assume sorcery had been involved in allaying his fears and sending him to sleep so quickly, but he couldn't be upset about its effectiveness.

Three knights, nine guards and a warlock strode silently through the tunnels, pausing as they arrived at the portal to the armory. "Okay. I'll summon the fire spirits once we get into the armory, and then we'll make it a straight shot to the council room where Morgana is." At the twelve nods Merlin pushed open the secret door, stepping lightly onto the armory floor.

Nine rubies rose from his pocket and expanded into bright creatures of flame and plasma, waiting for Merlin's mental command. The tenth remained dormant with Leon and Arthur, ready and waiting for any stray enemies to find them. As soon as the last guard set foot on the floor, he closed the portal door and opened the armory doors, sending forth his minions.

Immediately they were set upon by Morgana's mud soldiers, but they were no match for Merlin's flame atronachs. The muddied swords cut right through the creatures of flame without doing any damage, but irreparably destroying the swords in the process. The lick of a flame or a single slice from a burning blade sent the mud monsters away, crumbling and breaking apart within seconds.

The human's weapons were nearly as effective, blocking the mud-blades and then disrupting the magic holding the minions together with a single slash. Merlin strode forward, flanked by fire and followed by flesh, sending forth his minions to deal with anything ahead while the knights dealt with anything coming from behind.

It was slow, but it was almost unfair how easily they made their way to the council chamber. Merlin muttered to himself and then began to change, half terrifying the men watching him for instructions. By the end of his spell Merlin had become an old man, Dragoon the Great making an appearance once again. Looking around briefly before nodding, he threw open the chamber doors with a small burst of magic.

Morgana sat on the throne, not looking at all worried until she noticed who it was that had burst in. Her face clouded with fear and she lurched to her feet, shrieking a few words and extending her hand. Dozens of small monsters rose up around her and behind them, and Merlin could feel that they had arisen from all around the castle and were swarming this room.

Calmly, Merlin reached out and grasped the jewel at the heart of one of his elementals. _"Adfýr scildend, essian_ _ádaelwihtas._" Merlin released the gem, watching as it split into hundreds of glowing points of light which then blasted through the air, striking each and every monster Morgana had summoned. Within a second of the death of one of Merlin's creations, Morgana had no army in all of Albion except for herself.

"Em-emrys." Morgana stuttered, stepping backward to place the throne between herself and Merlin's group.

"Morgana, abandon this quest for vengeance! Have you not caused enough pain, not only to others but to yourself?" Merlin pleaded with the witch in the quiet but firm voice of an old and wise man, seeing his words turn in her mind and then fly away.

"I can never stop. I have nothing left but to rule this kingdom, as I rightfully shall! With Arthur out of the way, there is no one with any claim to the throne except for me! _Ástríce!_" Merlin caught and deflected Morgana's spell as though it were nothing, harmlessly bouncing it off the stone pillars at the side of the room.

At Arthur's name, Merlin had felt a twinge of magic from Morgana's extended wrist. He looked closer and saw a silver bracelet, recognizing it as one that the prince wore to special feasts. His mother had left it for him before she died.

"_Béag cum her!"_ Merlin gestured at Morgana, focusing his attention on the armlet. The bracelet launched itself from Morgana's wrist, a gruesome crack resounding as she tried to hold it on but failing. Merlin caught the silver coil as Morgana shrieked, clutching her wrist tightly to her chest. A crystal ripped itself from her pocket, landed in her unwounded hand, and with a golden flash of the eyes Morgana ripped apart into a black wind and exploded out one of the stained-glass windows.

Merlin placed his ruby guardians with his spellbook and Sidhe staff, smiling as he heard Gaius shuffling around in the room behind him. Merlin had found a spell for disenchanting another sorcerer's object and was preparing to take the bracelet to the still-tiny Arthur. Giving Gaius a small smile, happy his mentor was home, he departed for the prince's chambers.

"Merlin, it's about time! I need to see my father, and I need to speak to the council to reassure them that I am fit to rule and the kingdom should continue as it was before Morgana's latest attack." Mini Arthur was pacing in his room, erupting as soon as his warlock servant arrived.

"Relax, Sire. I've found a spell that will break the enchantment without ruining the vessel; you'll get your mother's bracelet back, and you'll be ready to go as soon as we get you dressed. Now take off that shirt, we don't want you choking." Merlin would fix the collar of the shirt later, but for now it was easier this way. His eyes flashed gold and the appropriate clothing for Arthur's afternoon activities flew from their places to rest near the prince.

Another spoken spell, a sprinkle of herbs and a flash of gold was all it took for the prince to shoot up a full meter, gain about fifty kilos and be returned to his natural age and body. Merlin tossed the now-normal bracelet to his prince and then proceeded to assist him in dressing quickly.

Minutes later Merlin stood inside the king's chambers, waiting patiently as Arthur spoke to his father. The king had receded even further into his depression when Morgana attacked, the witch having assaulted his beliefs and life yet having seen it a more fitting revenge to allow the man to suffer, rather than killing him.

Arthur turned away when he realized the king was responding so little as to be meaningless. Sad eyes met Merlin's as the two left the chamber, making their way to the council room.

"Please, be seated, I have a very significant announcement." Arthur stated strongly as the council members entered the room, Merlin standing off to the side as usual. The only reason he was allowed in here was as an errand boy should anybody need anything for any reason.

"I am not the king yet, and I refuse to take the throne while my father is still breathing, but I am going to make my intentions very clear." Arthur paused, allowing his ominous statement to sink in before continuing to address the older members of the court.

"Morgana's attack was sudden and violent, costing us a third of our men before they realized her soldiers could not be fought and wisely surrendered. Morgana rendered me useless by turning me into a child, no more than eight years old." The council members gasped, the same question burning in each of their eyes.

"While Morgana used magic to take the kingdom, I owe my life to that very same power." Arthur waited for a few seconds for his words to sink in yet again, watching as the shock of his curse gave way to confusion as he admitted magic saved him.

"A sorcerer named Emrys has been keeping an eye on Camelot, and me in particular, and fighting with us from the shadows. Nearly every impossible circumstance that has saved this kingdom is the result of his work.

"Emrys saved me from some of Morgana's creatures and then fled with me to a safe haven. He gathered some of our men from the dungeons and blessed their weapons to destroy Morgana's soldiers with a single blow. He raised his own creatures of fire to lay waste to her army."

The council was staring in fear and awe at their prince, listening to his story with indecision in their eyes.

"Ladies and gentlemen of the court." Arthur stood and looked into the eyes of each person in the room before continuing. "During the day that I was in Emrys care, I witnessed magic more powerful than anything this kingdom has faced to date. This sorcerer, a man my father would condemn as evil and lying and only desiring the destruction of Camelot, single-handedly saved our kingdom, my life, and restored me to my rightful body. He has saved us before, he did it again yesterday afternoon, and he said that he will continue to do so as long as he lives.

"In light of this clear example, I have made the decision that my father was not entirely correct about sorcery." Arthur paused for just a moment for the gasps that he expected. When none came he glanced around and took in the expressions of the court: incredulous, considerate, shocked, terrified. They were all there in differing amounts. He continued.

"I will acknowledge that sorcery can be evil, as in the case of Morgana. But I am going to revise how we consider it. Sorcery in itself is not evil; sorcery is _used_ for evil. It is also used for good, as Emrys has shown me. When my father resumes command of the kingdom, I plan to discuss this with him and I hope to reduce the penalty for the use of sorcery.

"When I become king," he continued loudly; now the gasps had sounded and disbelieving whispers had broken out around the table. "When I become king, I intend to remove the ban on sorcery, replacing it with laws governing its use. Sorcery is not a thing to be feared above all else. It should be respected and limited as one limits the use of any weapon. Magic, I believe, can also be used to ensure this kingdom's survival and launch us into a new age of prosperity. I will now take your comments."

Merlin stared at his prince as the council erupted with questions and concerns, hardly noticing as Arthur quieted them and began to discuss with them properly.

Arthur was going to repeal the ban on sorcery.

Arthur planned to save him, to restore magic to the kingdom.

Merlin smiled, glad for every day since he had arrived at Camelot, even glad that Morgana had attacked the other day.

Merlin looked toward the future, and smiled.

* * *

**I hope you enjoyed reading this as much as I did writing it. It feels good to actually post something for once, since I rarely do. Please review and let me know what you thought! I like to stick as close to the show and characters as I can, so I'll take constructive criticism too. Just no flaming. :)**

**For the spells I tried my best to stick to actual spells used in the show, but if I couldn't find one that suited my needs (which was a lot) then I used Old English, which is what they actually use in the show. If a burning desire for knowledge strikes your heart, and you really want to know the exact wording of a spell, PM me and I'll let you know, or you can find an online translator and look yourself if you can't stand waiting a few hours. ;)**


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